Wednesday, October 8, 2014

Art in Science Class

As I sat in a biology class listening to the teacher explain photosynthesis I was drawn into the lesson. I, a self-proclaimed scientific idiot, was excited to hear about the way leaves use light for energy. I wanted to be a part of the upcoming lab! I actually cared about this and wanted to take part in the upcoming lab.

And then it hit me... I was watching an artist at work!

I would have been able to read the teachers manual and deliver the same content to the class, but it would not be the same. It would be rote repetition. It would not be art!

So in the time of computer generated this and that it is the ART of the teacher that brings learning alive. Students can watch a video lesson, read about a topic or peruse a website. But a teacher brings it all together and makes it sing.

This is one of the secrets that is hidden in school halls. There are ArtistsinResidence inside many of our classrooms! The students know this-they know which teachers bring the subject alive.

But, somehow this is forgotten when they leave the school walls. The larger world seems to look down on the teaching profession believing any old person is able to teach. It erases the dedication that artists give to their work!